DigiStreet media undertakes the digital account for Mag+, an app-based ecosystem for creating and distributing content to apps which is powered by MPS. With its legacy of having de-merged out of Macmillan, the UK based publishing company, MPS has been actively operating in the publishing technology and services business with offices all over the world.

Commenting on this association, Kavish Arora, CDO & Head -CS, DigiStreet Media states, “Mag+ is one of the most innovative tools that we came across in a long time. It is an eco-system in its own with a team that only thinks innovation and with global offices across North America, Europe, and Asia. Our sole intention here is to provide it with the right amount of exposure in the digital platform that it truly deserves.”

DigiStreet’s secret weapon that gives it the strategic edge unlike anything else, is its group concern Diaphragm & Seer which is the powerhouse of all and any sort of creative solutions from product innovation to business solutions and much more.

Going forth, DigiStreet Media will also be servicing MPS for their SEO and Digital marketing which is a big task considering MPS’ rich legacy and richer present operations. “MPS is well-known for having been demerged out of the Macmillan publishing company from the UK. We take it as our extreme honour to be associated with such a dynamic brand and intend to assist them with right growth strategy” concludes Darpan Sharma, CEO, DigiStreet Media.

Footwear brand Relaxo Footwears Limited is now foraying into the digital gift voucher and loyalty points redemption space with GyFTR (Vouchagram), an online-to-offline (O2O) peer-to-peer gifting platform. The association gives Relaxo access to GyFTR's comprehensive gifting ecosystem and will include brand listing across top online catalogues, seamless and instant gifting/redemption and 24x7 customer support. The partnership is expected to bolster sales and customer acquisition for Relaxo, with GyFTR serving as a lucrative alternative sales channel for the brand.

The Relaxo vouchers being powered by GyFTR are redeemable across its 300+ listed brand outlets across the country in values ranging from INR 100, INR 250, INR 500, INR 1000, INR 2000 and INR 5000. The vouchers can be clubbed with ongoing promotions and offers. Users can even combine and redeem multiple gift vouchers on the same bill.

Commenting on this association, Arvind Prabhakar, Co-Founder and CEO – GyFTR, said, “Relaxo has been a popular offline brand for more than four decades has created a strong consumer base on the basis of its powerful merchandising, retail expansion and advertising. Its maiden foray into the digital voucher and redemption space with GyFTR will help the brand replicate its offline success with the rapidly growing online consumer base in India. We are confident that Relaxo will benefit from the differentiation that our extensive partner ecosystem of leading online brand catalogues in India will facilitate, registering a significant increase in transactions and hassle free customer acquisition.”

GyFTR currently services more than 2 million customers and has a clientele of 135+ active brands. The platform manages end-to-end execution, technology, and delivery for brands and facilitates seamless gifting across multiple geographies. It has been revolutionising the segment by making the experience of receiving a gift like a ‘gift’ in itself through its proprietary technology.

The second edition of the ISA CEO Conference that was held on Monday saw many dignitaries talk about the connectedness paradox. D Shivakumar, Group Executive President, Corporate-Strategy and Business Development, Aditya Birla, gave an insightful speech on Rethink and Rework, Competitive strategies for a new interconnected paradigm.

Speaking about being interconnected, Shivakumar explained how more than advertising, engagement would be the key in the coming days. “Every business connects to the other. No business is an island. Every event that happens has an impact on your business. You recognise that if you want to stay in an interconnected world. In the next decade, you will be more interconnected than you can imagine.”

Shivakumar explains how everything we use today - be it phones, cameras or clothes - are all interconnected. “All toys are from China, speakers from Vietnam, cameras from Japan and apparels are from Bangladesh,” he pointed out. “The best global brands are the best local brands today. Global best brands like McDonald’s adapt their menu to their relevant country. In India, they have aloo tikka.”

Coming to statistics, Shivakumar made some interesting predictions regarding the fate of digital India in the coming years. He predicted that India would be a $10 trillion economy in 2030. “About 60 per cent of that will be domestic consumption. India has always been a domestic-led market. China is about 40 per cent. India will be richer, younger and a more educated country, and also more connected.” He also shared how the income of the Indian middle class would change dramatically in 2030.

Furthermore to his analysis of what India would be in 2030, Shivakumar continued, “India will be digitally united by 2030. Digital as an emerging market is a huge unifier. It is not a divider. India will have 1 billion people on the internet via smartphones. We have skipped once and for all the laptop age, we flirted with tablet era, that’s also gone. Now, the phone screens will go bigger and will have all the functionalities of either a laptop or a tablet, we tend to use the phone a lot more. Smartphones will be a dominant tool in the future.”

Shivakumar also reveals how video will become big in the coming years. “Search engines are going vernacular. We have seen that with concepts like ‘Who wants to be a Billionaire’ or ‘Dancing With the Stars’. All these big concepts globally, when translated into vernacular, are as popular in Odisha, Tamil Nadu or Kerala as it is in the USA. Consumer voice matters a lot and if you are not serious about taking that right into your boardroom, then you will be in trouble.”
India has the cheapest data price in the world. It is at $0.26/1GB of mobile data whereas Switzerland has the highest price of $20.22/1GB for mobile data. “Everybody is talking and sharing with everybody. This is the interconnected world we live in. India has the second cheapest handsets in the world. So if you see, to enable interconnectedness, we have two of the biggest ones already,” explained Shivakumar.

Digital transparency will ensure newer business models. “For example, the subscription business model of Bombay Shaving Club. We have never thought of the subscription business model in the pass. Only a subscription business model that was successful in India in the past was magazines. But I believe more and more business will get into subscription today,” Shivakumar said. He also broadly explained how renting furniture would become a big business in future. That’s because people don’t want to own. They would rather pay money. “Why I am renting? Because I am closer to the information of seller buyer and user. I know exactly who used it and what I am willing to pay,” said Shivakumar. He also mentioned how it would be the same in the case for cars, apparels and many more. As for e-commerce, he predicted that ease of shopping would be a huge factor for interconnectedness.

Premiumization will accelerate and the growth will be 53 per cent with more attention grabbing technology at the point of purchase. Consumers will give their right arm for both education and health. Training in companies will be interconnected now. Health and food sector will grow dramatically in the next few years, he added.

The physical distribution of technology will not work anymore in this digital age. “Those who are big today, the digital guys will mercilessly murder them. They have zero cost, have all the margin and premium. If they play smart, India is waiting to premiumize and waiting for better options,” Shivakumar signed off.

Fantasy sports website MyTeam11, announced a collaboration with 25 television channels across the music, news, sports and knowledge sharing genres among others, in a massive campaign targeting the upcoming T20 and World Cup cricket season.

MyTeam11, who have popular former India cricketer Virender Sehwag as their brand ambassador, has a user base of around 10 million+ active users and offers fantasy cricket, fantasy football, fantasy volleyball, and fantasy kabaddi in two formats, namely the “Safe Play” & the “Regular Play,” being the only platform to offer multiple playing options to its users.

A significant number of regional channels have also been collaborated with under the aegis of this association, so as to maximise the reach and offer a familiar feel to the audience by offering them information in their native languages.

Commenting on the development, Vinit Godara, CEO and Co-founder, MyTeam11 said, “We are planning to become the leading brand in the world of fantasy sports, and the upcoming cricket season involving T20 leagues and the ICC cricket world cup seems to be the right fit for our plans. With this collaboration we want to reach out to people in every nook-and-corner of the country and encourage them to use their talent, skills & knowledge of the game to earn while enjoying their favourite sport.”

Prior to this collaboration, Myteam11 had signed some noteworthy deals with various sporting properties like the RuPay Pro Volleyball League, Karnataka Premier League and others as their ‘Official Fantasy Partner’.

These associations become pertinent in their attempt to outgrow as an organisation and target people who are not much familiar with the concept of fantasy sports. In the words of the company leaders, they are presently targeting on reaching the remote locations of India, spreading the word regarding fantasy sports.

MyTeam11 had also previously partnered with DSport, a premium sports channel of Discovery Communications, as ‘Official Broadcasting Partner’ for the India-Australia series and as ‘Broadcast Co-presenting Partners’ of the Bangladesh Premier League. They had also inked a deal with DD Sports for the India-New Zealand T20 series held recently.

Inshorts, the English news app, has launched its new advertisement format - the Digital Magazine. Launched in 2013, Inshorts has more than 200 advertisers who use the platform to reach out to relevant customers. By innovating Ad formats like Fact Cards, HTML Ads, Inshorts has aimed to create a unique and non-intrusive format of advertising. Keeping in line with Inshorts’ constant vision of coming up with more of such relevant and creative ad formats for new age brands who want to connect with netizens, Inshorts has released yet another engaging format of advertising coined ‘Digital Magazine’.

Strongly advocating that creative content in today’s time cannot be restricted to only text and allowing brands the opportunity to connect with their audience in different and distinct ways; Digital Magazines are designed to include GIFs, videos and polls to keep the audience interested. Similarly, since millennials like to share interesting and relatable content among their peers on social media, they can now share the entire magazine on their social media or via WhatsApp.

Digital Magazine aims at getting the customers themselves to engage with the advertiser’s brand story allowing the readers to not just flip through the pages on the go but to intrigue them enough to do so.

Speaking about the launch of Digital Magazine, Azhar Iqubal, Co-founder and CEO, Inshorts said, “Today native advertising is on the rise and brands today need new and creative ways to get their message to their millennial audience and get them to actually listen. With the launch of digital magazine ad format by Inshorts, brands can now engage their audience with content which can be entertaining and insightful, and connect through a non-intrusive medium.”

Due to interactive content, low cost production and distribution as compared to traditional magazines, digital magazines are progressively catching the eyes of the marketing and advertiser community. Inshorts digital magazine has already helped some global brands like Netflix to get 3x more engagement as compared to text ads for its new series - ‘The Umbrella Academy’ within just 2 weeks of its release. Apart from this, Inshorts had also partnered with Netflix for its original series - Narcos and Cadbury for its Valentines’ Week campaign.

Further commenting on the launch, Piyush Thakur, National Sales Head at Inshorts said, “We are a company which is known for innovation and industry first. We are known for interesting and engaging products both from user and advertiser prospective. Digital Magazine takes our commitment a step ahead in that direction where it not only serves advertisers prospect of engaging with the user but also enrich user with right kind of information in interesting and crisp manner. We strongly believe, with our commitment, hardwork and farsightedness we will continue to challenge traditional media with our unique and interesting offerings.”

Telecom operator Vodafone Idea Limited and Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL) announced a strategic partnership for OTT platform ZEE5. Under the strategic partnership, aimed at driving the growth of digital ecosystem in India, the content portfolio of ZEE5 will be available to Vodafone Idea customers on Vodafone Play as well as Idea Movies & TV app.

Customers of Vodafone Idea can now enjoy the entire content catalogue of ZEE5 thereby providing a seamless viewing experience via multiple devices. The association between the two industry leaders will help create a beneficial ecosystem for viewers that will drive the growth of video viewing in smaller cities and towns in times to come. The content of ZEE5 can be accessed by customers through Vodafone Play or idea Movies & TV app. The ZEE5 content is available across 12 languages like English, Hindi, Bengali, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Marathi, Oriya, Bhojpuri, Gujarati & Punjabi across genres like Kids content, Cineplays, Live TV and Health and Lifestyle content.

Commenting on the partnership, Avneesh Khosla, Operations Director - Marketing, Vodafone Idea Limited said, “Our customers are constantly seeking rich and diverse content options and we aim to provide enriched entertainment to our customers by offering high quality content on Vodafone Play and Idea Movies & TV. We are happy to partner with ZEE5 and bring their library of content to our customers. Our insights on customer preferences, salience and relevance along with ZEE’s deep understanding of the Indian content viewership habits are being brought together through this partnership. We are happy to offer the entire catalogue of ZEE5 along with 2 exclusive channels to our customers as an introductory offer.”

Speaking about the association, Tarun Katial, CEO, ZEE5 India said, “ZEE5 and Vodafone Idea lend themselves to a complementary partnership. Having established ourselves as the fastest growing OTT platform in India with the largest repertoire of content, we have attracted subscribers across geographies and demographics. We have an ambitious growth plan charted out for us and through this partnership with Vodafone Idea, India’s largest telecom company, we will leverage synergies between the brands and further bolster our presence across the country.”

Through this alliance, Vodafone Idea subscribers will be able to access the content repertoire of ZEE5:

LIVE TV offering of ZEE’s Network content on Vodafone Play and Idea Movies & TV through ZEE5 app

Unrestricted catch up of ZEE Network content through ZEE5 app. Customers will be able to access the ZEE5 content library including TV shows, movies and Before TV content

Vodafone Idea customers will get access to ZEE5 premium subscription which includes Original shows and films, premium movies, digital movie premieres of upcoming blockbuster films, etc. as an introductory offer

Vodafone Idea subscribers will have access to the complete content portfolio of ZEE5 that includes the original web-series in Hindi and regional languages (including dubbed versions). ZEE5 offers original content in six languages – Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam

Customers will also get unrestricted access to the entire movie library on the platform including digital premieres, acquired content, original films and so on.

The highlight is 2 exclusive linear digital channels including Zee Theatre - premium theatre content to be available on Vodafone Play and Idea Movies & TV app

ZEE5 is India’s fastest growing entertainment OTT destination that has invested heavily in acquiring and producing content that will resonate with a cross-section of viewers across the country. As of December 2018, ZEE5 has 56.3 million monthly active users, who spend an average of 31 minutes on the platform per day. ZEE5 has consistently been amongst the top-5 free and grossing entertainment apps in India as per the Google Play store rankings. In a first of its kind initiative, in the past quarter, ZEE5 launched regional subscription packs for Tamil, Telugu and Kannada users. These tiered SVOD packs enable consumers to watch premium content in a language of their choice at half the price. Subscribers of these packs are also able to watch their favourite TV shows hours before they are aired on television later in the day. This offering has helped ZEE5 gather subscription momentum in the south Indian market.

The Vodafone Play app is a one-stop entertainment destination to enjoy live TV Shows, latest movies and original content. Downloaded by more than 10 Million+ Vodafone Subscribers it gives access to over 9500+ movies,in16 different languages, 300+ live TV channels along with a huge catalogue of original web series and International TV Shows across all genres.

Idea Movies & TV app is an ultimate gateway to popular movies and video watching experience. The robust library comprises of 8500+movies, 400+Live TV Channels, TV Shows and Original Content across various genres. With over 10 million+ downloads Idea Movies & TV app has been growing in popularity and rating of 4.4 on Play store.

Hotstar recently announced the launch of Hotstar Specials, which will feature shows from India’s most acclaimed storytellers. The first to arrive from this bouquet is ‘Roar Of The Lion’. It charts the journey of Chennai Super Kings’ comeback to IPL through Mahendra Singh Dhoni after a two year ban and lifting the trophy last year. Hotstar claims it’s a story he didn’t even narrate to his own friends. The show hits the streamer on March 20 which couldn’t have been a more apt time because Indian Premiere League begins from March 23. In fact, the first match of the tournament is between CSK and Royal Challengers Bangalore. Could it be a move to get more time spend on the app apart from match viewing? Nikhil Madhok, EVP & Head Hotstar Original Content, insists it’s by default and not by design.

Speaking to exchange4media, Madhok explains, “The way this story panned out, we would have wanted it regardless of whether or not IPL had happened. The stars have aligned in such a way that it is launching a couple of days before IPL. It does have a significant advantage. In the course of next eight to six weeks when the IPL is on, the traffic and the numbers are really mind-boggling. Frankly, it provides this particular show a massive opportunity for people to watch it. In that sense yes, it happened more by default than design which is beneficial. For us, we couldn’t have asked for a more original story for our first Hotstar Special is concerned.”

‘Roar of The Lion’ is a collaboration with Deepak Dhar’s Banijay Asia and MS Dhoni’s Dhoni Entertainment with Hotstar being the OTT platform on which it is mounted. When asked what made Dhar go for Hotstar, the Founder & CEO revealed, “The whole content boom that is happening. Now you want content to be made available on every device possible. This has really become the closest screens and the big screen is quite far off.” He also added how unlike ‘Sachin: A Billion Dreams’ which was in the docu-drama space like ‘Roar Of the Lion’, he never really thought about taking it to the theatres.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni already has a film to his name which speaks about his journey from a TC with the railways to being the World Cup winning captain. The film made Rs 120 crore or more at the box office. So why a show on him makes sense for Hotstar’s consumers? Madhok explains, “We announced our initiative for Hotstar Special a few months ago. Around that point of time, Deepak has come up with the idea of ‘Roar of The Lion’. We found a couple of things exciting. As the home of cricket in the country, Hotstar is the credible platform to tell such a story. In the kind of specials that we are doing, we are trying to be innovative. A story like his which is a mixture of drama and documentary…people are not really exposed to in this country. Given the size and scale Hotstar has we are going to make it available in multiple languages, the entire country can watch it.”

Owing to the rapid technological advancements, the online retailing industry in India has emerged to become one of the most dynamic and fast-growing industries. Factors such as deeper penetration of the internet, increase in smartphone usage and online payments are contributing well towards the growth of the online retail. According to a report by e-Marketer, the e-commerce industry in India has grown more than 3 times since 2015, and by 2022, the same will be worth 71.94 billion dollars.

The current business environment in India has the potential to enhance the growth of the online retail sector. One of the key factors that can fuel its growth is the increase in the number of Internet and smartphone users. According to a recent report of IAMAI, India will have 500 million users internet users by the end of this year. Also, India is one of the booming markets which is observing the rapid growth of smartphone customers. The convenient availability of affordable smartphones will further enhance the e-retailing opportunities in India in the near future.

The rise in transactions through net banking, debit cards, and credit cards is another factor which is augmenting the growth of online retailing. With net-banking and credit/debit cards simplifying the transaction process and the emergence of secure transaction methods like One Time Passwords (OTPs) and secure payment gateways, consumers are preferring to shop online.

Even though the Indian online retailing market has enormous growth prospects, there are a lot of hurdles for e-retailers in the country. Effective logistics play a crucial role in defining the working success of e-retailers as on-time delivery and other priority services are the biggest challenges for online retailers. Also, the cost of logistics in India is high due to the lack of adequate infrastructure along with another significant disadvantage that is the limited technology reserves and developments in the Indian logistics sector. If we observe the other developed countries, there are significantly huge investments carried out in such technologies as Global Positioning System (GPS) to improve the tracking of delivery and shipment of customer orders. Another big difficulty that the sector is facing today is the slow speed internet connectivity which again can have a huge effect on the evolving prospects of online retail in the long run.

Overall, the future of the Indian online retail sector looks bright. The pace at which online retail is growing, it can make a significant contribution to the consolidated retail industry and the economy of our country. The growth of this sector can be boosted enormously, provided we overcome the challenges related to the infrastructure, policy framework and operational environment of our country.

(The author Rohit Dhingra is the Co-Founder & CEO of TAGG, a consumer electronics brand)

Disclaimer: The views expressed here are solely those of the author and do not in any way represent the views of exchange4media.com

Global travel community Tripoto is partnering with British automaker Morris Garages (MG) India for immersive video solutions, offering to boost awareness and sustain interest about the brand ahead of its India launch this year. Tripoto is creating a non-fiction travel web series, ‘World of MG: An Indian Abroad’, which will be shot in 6 different countries before concluding in India.

Tripoto has collaborated with actor and model, Amol Parashar, for the 7-season web series, 1 season each for seven countries. Amol will be travelling to all 7 countries, promoting and sustaining Morris Garages as the world’s foremost luxury car brand. The series will have Amol bring to life how Morris Garages has been a part of these countries through their culture, food, revelry and cars.

Talking about ‘World of MG: An Indian Abroad’, Michael Pargal Lyngdoh, Co-founder, Tripoto, said, “The digital renaissance in our country has triggered the youth to turn to the internet for alternative and shareable content. Web Series have become an impactful way to present a brand and create lasting conversations. Through World of MG: An Indian Abroad, we aim to build a connection for Morris Garages (MG) India amongst our strong and active community of more than 25 Mn+ travelers.”

Speaking on their association woth Tripoto, Pallavi Singh, Marketing Head, Morris Garages (MG) India India, said, “Since the inception of the brand in 1924, storytelling has been an integral part of MG. In India, we have been following in the footsteps by focussing on powerful, emotive video content using new-age digital tools and formats. We’ve had a great association with Tripoto in the past with #RoadToMGLive! Through World of MG: An Indian Abroad series, we hope to take this association further ahead by giving a peek into MG’s global presence across the world and thereby, letting communities experience the local cultural flavour.”

The first of season of the series, shot in Thailand will go live on Tripoto’s social media channels and its website (www.tripoto.com) from March 14 onwards. The four episodes will be shown back to back each day from March 14 to March 17.

Apart from Thailand, ‘World of MG: An Indian Abroad’ has been shot in China and other countries in his travel map are Egypt, Australia, United Arab Emirates, South Africa and then culminating in India.

Topics such as financial independence, post-pregnancy weight loss and child care tips are commonly talked about across parenting groups and platforms. However, mothers seldom speak up about issues that truly affect their physical and mental well-being through public domains such as social media platforms. Identifying the need for women to discuss lesser spoken topics, without divulging their identities, Momspresso, a platform of expression for Moms, has launched Support Groups. Momspresso’s new product is aimed at offering women dedicated groups wherein they can discuss specific topics like single motherhood, intimacy and depression without revealing their identities.

Internationally, there are several groups for moms where they can bond with like-minded women, share their problems and offer solutions, all the while remaining anonymous. Through such groups, mothers can create a sisterhood of sorts, a safe space for them to open up about issues important to them. In India, unfortunately, such groups that facilitate anonymous solidarity do not exist. While numerous moms are a part of various groups on social media that discuss common topics related to motherhood, many mothers do not feel comfortable participating due to the fear of being identified and judged by friends or relatives. Through this feature mothers can remain anonymous while discussing intimate issues affecting their lives, Momspresso is ensuring that mother can use the community to seek or share advice without fear of being judged or misunderstood.

Since the launch of support groups in October 2018, in both English and Hindi, the product has witnessed strong traction, with audio comments being a popular feature with users. The Hindi group “Kahein man ki har baat”, has seen the highest engagement with mothers finding the comfort of anonymity to discuss a wide variety of topics. ‘Depression and Anxiety’ is another group that has seen good engagement with mothers discussing pertinent issues such as postpartum depression, healing from anxiety and how to deal with negative emotions. Similarly, the group for ‘divorced and single mums’ allows mothers to open up about the financial, emotional and physical implications of solo parenting.

Currently, Momspresso is eyeing rapid expansion by adding several new products. To oversee its product function, Momspresso has also announced the appointment of Anirudh Agrawal as its Product Head. Anirudh moves to Momspresso from PopXo, where he spearheaded the product. He will play a key in driving Momspresso’s product strategy to achieve its vision of having 70 per cent of all urban Indian mothers use the platform.

Speaking on the launch of Support Groups, Vishal Gupta, Co-founder & CEO of Momspresso said, “Motherhood can be a lonely journey and through this product, we will enable mothers to seek and provide support on a wide range of issues that affect them deeply. With every Support Group, we want mothers to reassure mothers that they are not alone”.

Speaking on the unique concept of anonymous support groups, Shimona Shahi Rana, Chief Content Officer, Momspresso, said, “We have started 23 Groups across English and Hindi, including Divorce and Single Moms, Adoption, Sex & Intimacy, Raising Children with Disabilities, In-laws Stories and New Moms, amongst others. More groups will be added throughout the year. By joining a group, mothers will have easy access to other mothers who are going through the same experiences as them. They can share their experiences, ask and answer questions posed by other moms, create polls on topics which they always wondered about and, most importantly, support each other. The best part is that they can do so anonymously, so more moms will be able to partake in difficult yet important conversations through our platform,” she added.

Since its inception, Momspresso has inspired moms to become the best and happiest versions of themselves. Its rich community of 10,000 mommy bloggers have created more than 80,000 blogs in 8 different languages, covering topics as diverse as pregnancy and baby care, teenage and adolescent issues, beauty, fashion, relationships, healthcare and more. With the launch of Momspresso Groups, the platform is cementing its position as a safe space that connects and supports moms through the journey of motherhood and womanhood. With the collective strength of its 18 million mom community, Momspresso wants moms to know that #YouAreNotAlone.

The India Today Group unveiled a gaming app called So Sorry Gully Cricket, featuring its award-winning politoons in the line-up of players.

A perfect fusion of sports and news ahead of general elections and the Cricket World Cup, So Sorry Gully Cricket was launched at FICCI FRAMES event in Mumbai by Indian cricketing legend Sunil Gavaskar alongside Sam Balasara, Founder Chairman, Madison Worldwide and Shashi Sinha, Chief Executive Officer, IPG Mediabrands.

Kalli Purie, Vice-Chairperson, India Today Group said, “We are really excited to announce the launch of the new game ‘So Sorry Gully Cricket’ at FRAMES in presence of such a distinguished audience. ‘So Sorry Gully Cricket’ is a unique game that portrays life and politics in a way that is interactive, real and interesting. With India heading for Parliamentary elections the timing could not be more perfect. It's a super example of an integrated use of technology and content.”

The app uses animated cartoon videos in a game set in trademark Indian ‘gullies’, or streets, something that every Indian consumer has experienced while growing up and playing cricket.

Teams in this fun game make up of top politicians contesting Lok Sabha elections, cricket-loving avatars of famous politoons from the blockbuster So Sorry series. So Sorry Gully Cricket is jazzed up with artwork that every Indian would relate to.

A visual delight, the game is enriched with fun elements, such as a milkman and a ‘machhiwali’, or a fish vendor, typically seen in Mumbai. The game comprises 85 matches and follows unique rules of gully cricket, under-arm bowling and one bounce catch-outs included.

"Cricket is potentially a religion. We had a perfect ingredient in So Sorry characters and the fusion of the two will work for sure. You will recognise all the characters and sounds. It's a treat to the ears as well," said Alok Kejriwal, Founder and CEO of Games2win India Private Limited, who devised the app.